Crime & Safety
Cell Phone Driving Law Takes Effect Saturday
Police can now pull you over for reading texts while driving.
Need to text your child on the way home? Get a really important email?
It can wait.
Under a Maryland law that takes effect Saturday, texting or reading messages on your phone while in the driver's seat is now illegal.
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If you're caught, the violation carries a $70 fine and one point on your driver's license, WBAL Radio reports. If it contributes to an accident, it's a $110 fine with three points.
Sending a text while driving has been illegal since 2009. The new law includes reading or sending messages while driving, even when stopped at a red light. GPS devices and texts to emergency services are exempt under the law.
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Talking on your cell phone without a hands-free device is now a secondary offense, meaning officers can't stop you for it, but they can cite you if they stop you for another offense, like speeding or running a red light.
State Sen. sponsored the bill. He told WBAL Radio on Thursday that the new law is "a fair balance."
"Texting and driving just don't mix," saud Brochin.
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